Digital Art Discoveries

Today while researching Digital Art for my Art History Classes I stumbled across the work of Annette Weintraub. In reading the article explaining how she arrives at her images I was excited to hear that she uses multi-layering techniques, which is the section I am trying to get to understand. Her images are incredibly rich in saturated colors and strong contrast. I really find the image Shards particularly appealing through its inclusion of architectural elements, urban signs and optical illusion of crystal-like shards. Her color balancing within the image is superb in the way that it facitilates movement within the image.

Reference:

Annette Weintraub. "Shards". 1996. Techno Seduction. 25 August 2009

Layers of Layers Project #11

Last night and this afternoon I worked through the instructions for layering. It took me a while to figure out how to resize a batch of images at the same time as my version of Photo Elements does not have the sequence File>Automate>Batch. However, I did get it right eventually.

I am finding with increased exposure to working with Photoshop Elements I am starting to be able to repeat procedures without having to consult the manual. I am also understanding what I am doing. Previously when I played with Photoshop, it was really hit and miss whether I got the procedure correct or not. But, having worked systematically through the material presented I feel as if I have a better understanding of the processes involved.

The various Blending Modes are very interesting to play with. At first it was hard to see how each different type changed things. My daughter who has had a lot more experience at creating Digital Art, showed me the various Blend Modes she used in various pictures she created in order to enhance her images and create special effects. She said that with time I will be able to assess beforehand what the effect is likely to be. At present it is rather hit and miss.

I did enjoy playing with the Colour Dodge Mode. This creates a dynamic image, enhancing the color contrast.

It is interesting, my tutor told me the other day that I should try to push more towards images that are "signature" images. Yesterday whil reading a workbook on Color, I came across a whole section that talks about learning to recognise your signature colors. I even had my students use magazines to pick out their 10 signature colors to create a signature color palette. As I played with the various Blend Modes today, I was very aware of the fact that my signature color scheme is definitely towards the bold range with oranges and deep blues.

Kazakh photographs

While researching material for my Art History lessons today, I stumbled across a site recommended by OCA containing photographs of Kazakh life in Mongolia http://reportage.co.uk/features/eagle-hunters/.

Project#9 Painting and tools

I am really excited by the progress that was made during this project. I have periodically played around with Photoshop Tutorials, but as they were not following a sequential learning style, I found that what I learnt was hit and miss. Today, however, I have a far greater understanding of the variety of tools, how to change their pixel size and opacity. There are some really interesting brushes available and it has been fun just having the permission to play without needing a set outcome.

I found the brush grid background very useful in being able to size freehand letters. I know that I will make use of this grid.

It has been great being able to practice my Genius drawing pad. I bought this a while ago but have found it frustrating to use. However, today I feel I have a better handle on how to use it. It is definitely more controllable than a traditional mouse, so this is also an area in which I feel I have made progress.

I tried to draw a sphere using a variety of brushes and found that I was starting to develop ways of creating the chiaroscuro achievable through traditional media.

Assignment #2

Task #1

As I liked Christopher Nolasco's idea of using drawn images in a composite artwork (see previous blog), I decided to commence my image preparations by doing an observational drawing of myself. My husband took a photo of me which I used as my source. Once I had completed the drawing I scanned it into the computer.

My husband and children are an essential part of my life and have defined to a large degree who I have become. For this reason, I scanned in photographs of us. The size of the photographs varied somewhat, which I realised would effect my compositions. I also included 2 images of greeting cards which are published by the school I am now teaching at in Kazakhstan.

Task #2

This was a section I particularly enjoyed as I selected images that would sum up aspects of my character and identity. As I love the sea, having spent a good portion of my life living in cities next to the sea, I scanned in a wire fish, star fish and seashells. I am also very fond of plants and interesting wooden stalks, so I scanned in some rushes I found near the lake, with some interesting roots.

The keyrings and keys represent the countries which I have lived in or have an allegiance to. The South African flag, the Kazakhstan national emblem and a Scottish design decorate the keyrings.

A few years ago all of my jewelry was stolen. As a result the jewelry I have now collected is particularly meaningful to me as my husband and friends have specifically selected them to replace the items stolen. The necklace I have included is my personal favorite. The day after my robbery my friend left a little package on my desk containing this necklace with a note saying that for a long time she had felt that God was telling her to give this necklace to me. Following my robbery, she knew that the necklace was meant for me. Not only is this necklace Celtic in design -a style I love - but it also includes my birthstone, Topaz. I am fond of Kazakh designs, so the ear rings selected are my favorite Kazakh pieces.

I decided to scan my foot, partly because I wanted to do something I had not seen others do, and partly as I see myself to be a "down-to-earth" kind of person. Living in Kazakhstan has also taught me to immediately take off my shoes on entering someones home - in summer this means that you go around barefoot, something I always did as a child growing up in Zimbabwe. Taking your shoes off is a sign of respect for the other person's carpets and the cleanliness of their house. One of the characters I am trying to develop is to have a respect for all individuals, regardless of their status and lifestyle, and to be prepared to adjust my mannerisms to ensure that my ways do not offend others.

The belt is just a fun accessory that through its use of natural looking materials and its repetition of circular shapes, seemed to have compositional potential.

Task #3

I found it hard to crystallise my ideas down to a single image that I felt summed up my personality and communicated some of my interests. Before trying to assemble any compositions, I drew four thumbnails sketches. These sketches helped to clarify for me compositional starting points.

Seeing that I had spent time doing the self-portrait sketch, I started with this image. Despite my intentions to use this sketch in my collage, I found that it was fairly limiting through its stark black and white image. It also came across as being too somber for the more hearty mood I wished to convey. This image I have included here was the best composition that I experimented with, but I felt that it was not as unified as I desired it to be.

As I liked the general layout of the other objects, I decided to place my foot in the area where the sketch was positioned. This composition seemed to have lots of potential, so I commenced playing with the layout of these objects.

Task #4

This phase of the process was probably the most intellectually fascinating. I have always been taught and read about how a single element within an artwork can totally change the resulting dynamics of an artwork. This has never been as dramatically demonstrated to me as in this exercise.

As part of my picture I wanted an original scan of my foot - I wanted the image to be clear and direct. This posed for some problems as it meant that I had to position all of the objects on the scanner bed in their positions, allowing for the size and direction of my foot. I then had to climb onto the table in such a way that I could place my foot carefully on the scanner and still access my lap top to scan the images.

What was particularly difficult was that despite my having cleaned off the scanner glass before commencing each arrangement, the slightest bump or nudge of the arrangement by my placement of my foot on the scanner caused the delicate star fish to crumble leaving smatterings of star fish on the screen. I also found that the least bit of shifting caused the chain to cover over sections of the photographs. Because I was having to thrown the orange cloth down over my foot after everything was in place, the lines of the cloth, with its tassels, were also hard to dictate.

Despite all of these challenges and the fact that I had to become a contortionist to do any minuscule adjustments to the arrangement, I was pleased with the overall composition of the final piece. I feel that the eye is carefully lead in a swirl around the artwork, sweeping up the starfish in the centre and coming to focus on the photographs. The belt serves to frame the left hand side and top of the frame, leading your eye along the chain. It is then lead down the foot and earrings. The movement is held by the sweep of the keys and then directed up the star fish staggered formation of the star fish towards the photos.

Unity is achieved through the overall warm color scheme of orange and brown; as well as the repetition of similar angles and circular motifs. As I explained earlier in a blog entry, I have had a number of people associate me with orange. So I chose an orange scarf along with a brown belt to communicate my love for warmth, nature, forests and Africa. It is interesting that 2 of the photographs have a wooden fence in the background, connecting them to the belt frame.

After achieving this particular image, I continued to experiment with arrangements. One of my concerns was that the composition was fairly empty in places. However the more I adjusted the compositions and added items, the more cluttered the image felt. The more I thought about myself, the more I realised that an uncluttered composition is a better representation of me than a cluttered image. I hate clutter and spend a good deal of time pruning our "clutter" to ensure that what we have stored is functional and not extraneous. So interestingly enough the simpler composition is the more accurate portrayal of me.

This assignment was challenging, as I sought to create a self-portrait which was not hackneyed. As spin off from the process was that I thoroughly enjoyed seeing how the smallest shift in the objects caused the focal point and resulting message of the artwork to change completely.

Preparation for Assignment #2 Self-portrait

As I desire to create a self-portrait that portrays images directly and indirectly associated with me, I decided to explore the works of a cross-section of artists. My desire is to go beyond what I have normally come to associate with the idea of "self-portrait". The idea of having to develop a self-portrait from images scanned into the computer is rather daunting at this stage.

In commencing my internet search I started by researching works by Audrey Flack. This painter often used a wide variety of objects and possessions in order to convey the personality, interests and obsessions of the person she had based her painting on, e.g. Marilyn (Vanitas). Although her works are filled with so many images, she is able to achieve unity through her clever use of color balancing. In this case the gaudy red color is repeated in such a way that it forms almost an oval frame around the centre of the picture. Unity is also achieved by repeating items of similar shape, e.g. the cylindrical forms of the candle, lipstick, hour glass. The work of Christopher Nolasco RFK Towards Understanding is an intriguing piece. I thought that his use of an old photograph, a quotation and sketched images is something that is adaptable to the Digital media I am exploring.

At this stage I started scanning a variety of objects that hold specific connotations to me. I found that the more I scanned the more ideas came to mind. Eventually I decided to complete a brain storm to try to prioritise and organise my thinking. What was interesting about completing the brainstorm was to see how diverse my list was and to be able to focus on what were some of the main areas I wish to convey.

Website Images:

Audrey Flack. Marilyn (Vanitas), 1977. 15 January 1999. 31 July 2009 <http://www.audreyflack.com/AF/index.php?name=photorealism&directory=.&currentPic=6>

Christopher Nolasco. RFK Towards Understanding. 2008. 31 July 2009 <http://www.nolascoart.com/>